Know coaching staff of all 11 ISL teams for 2022-23 season

As many as seven teams have new head coaches this term.

Season nine of the Indian Super League (ISL) kicked-off in Kochi with last year's runners-up Kerala Blasters beating East Bengal in a thriller at home in the season opener. A brand new season means wholesome changes, new faces and debutants. Teams make changes to their squad every summer — some to bolster their squad, others undergo a complete overhaul to start afresh. Apart from the players, clubs also often make changes to their coaching staff, ushering in new eras. Several ISL teams have changed their head coaches and made major changes in their coaching staffs as well.

In this article, we will look in detail at all the ISL teams' coaching staff. 

Jamshedpur FC

Jamshedpur FC finished last season as the table-toppers and went on to win the ISL Winners' Shield. However, they haven't enjoyed the best of starts this season under new boss Aidy Boothroyd. The Men of Steel have played two games as of now and earned just a point.

• Head Coach - Aidy Boothroyd
• Foreign Assistant Coach - Stuart Watkiss
• Indian Assistant Coach - Noel Wilson
• Goalkeeping Coach - Leslie Cleevely
• Strength & Conditioning Coach - Adrian Gregory Dias

Hyderabad FC

The champions of ISL 2021-22 have started the season in style. In 2020-21, Hyderabad finished fifth but came back stronger the next season and became champions. Head coach Manolo Marquez has nurtured young talents like Akash Mishra, Chinglensana Singh and many others, with several of them getting national call-ups as well. This season, with no major changes to the squad, Marquez will aim to qualify for the playoffs yet again.

• Head Coach - Manolo Marquez
• Foreign Assistant Coach - Benito Montalvo
• Indian Assistant Coach - Shameel Chembakath
• Goalkeeping Coach - Asier Rey
• Strength & Conditioning Coach - Jose Carlos Barroso Coll

ATK Mohun Bagan

Like last season, ATK Mohun Bagan started off on a poor note losing the AFC cup semi-finals to Kuala Lumpur City. They also failed to qualify for the knockout stages of the Durand Cup. Their ISL campaign started in a similar fashion, but the 5-2 win against Kerala Blasters has injected an extreme level of motivation inside the team. The Mariners would want to build the momentum heading into the Kolkata Derby on the 29th of October.

• Head Coach - Juan Ferrando
• Foreign Assistant Coach - N/A
• Indian Assistant Coach - Bastab Roy
• Goalkeeping Coach - Angel Pindado
• Strength & Conditioning Coach - Alvaro Ros Bernal

Kerala Blasters

The last season was one of the best for Kerala Blasters. They ended as the runners-up of the ISL for the third time since its inception. A statistic for the fans - Kerala Blasters have appointed the most number of coaches in ISL history, with most coaches leaving before a season. However, their latest coach Ivan Vukomanovic has transformed the club after a string of poor seasons. Vukomanovic in his first season took the team to the playoffs and finished runners-up.

• Head Coach - Ivan Vukomanovic
• Foreign Assistant Coach - Frank Dauwen
• Indian Assistant Coach - Ishfaq Ahmed
• Goalkeeping Coach - Slaven Progovecki
• Strength & Conditioning Coach - Werner Martens

Mumbai City FC

Mumbai City FC finished fifth last season, outside the playoffs after starting the campaign on a bright note. However, the steering of the ship remains with Des Buckingham. Fans expect the Islanders to qualify for the playoffs this season. Notably, Mumbai City became the first club from India to win a match in the AFC Champions League under Des Buckingham.

• Head Coach - Des Buckingham
• Foreign Assistant Coach - Hiyoshi Miyazawa
• Indian Assistant Coach - Anthony Fernandes
• Goalkeeping Coach - Rogerio Ramos
• Strength & Conditioning Coach - Danny Deigan

Bengaluru FC

Bengaluru FC fared poorly in the last two seasons. The club from Karnataka had to change two coaches in the process but couldn't get the desired results. This season, the club has started with a bang, winning the Durand Cup. In the ISL, they have registered a win, a loss and a draw in their first three fixtures. In Simon Grayson, they also have a coach who has managed several Premier League clubs like Leeds United in the past.

• Head Coach - Simon Grayson
• Foreign Assistant Coach - Erick Kinder
• Indian Assistant Coach - Naushad Moosa
• Goalkeeping Coach - Andy Beasley
• Strength & Conditioning Coach - Diwakar Manohar

Odisha FC

Odisha FC showed good form in the initial half of the previous season but couldn't continue the momentum, which ultimately cost them the playoff spot. But with the return of Josep Gombau, the team has brought in quality foreigners as replacements. The team has already registered two comebacks this season.

• Head Coach - Joseph Gombau
• Foreign Assistant Coach - Jacobo Varela
• Indian Assistant Coach - Clifford Miranda
• Goalkeeping Coach - Manu Patricio
• Strength & Conditioning Coach - Pablo Fernandez Lopez

Chennaiyin FC

The two-time ISL winners did not have the best results in the last two seasons. After the departure of Owen Coyle, the management appointed Csaba Laszlo and Bozidar Bandovic. However, both failed to make the playoffs. For ISL 2022-23, the management has roped in Thomas Brdaric from Germany. Brdaric arrived in India in early July and guided Chennaiyin FC to the Durand Cup 2022 semi-finals.

• Head Coach - Thomas Brdaric
• Foreign Assistant Coach - Matko Djarmati
• Indian Assistant Coach - Sabir Pasha
• Goalkeeping Coach - Milorad Niko

FC Goa

ISL 2021-22 was one of FC Goa's worst seasons after a string of poor results and the departure of head coach Juan Ferrando in the middle of the season. This year, Carlos Pena has taken over as the head coach, having previously represented the club as a player. The Spaniard played 39 games and scored twice. In 2019-20, he lifted the first-ever ISL League Winners' Shield as well.

• Head Coach - Carlos Pena
• Foreign Assistant Coach - Gorca Azkorra
• Indian Assistant Coach - Gouramangi Singh
• Goalkeeping Coach - Eduard Carrera
• Strength & Conditioning Coach - Joel Dones

NorthEast United

Khalid Jamil became the first Indian coach to manage an ISL team. However, he couldn't do justice to the role, finishing 10th in the league standings. Jamil after taking the team to the playoffs in season 7, failed to repeat it the next time. As a result, the NEUFC management have appointed Israeli Marco Balbul as their head coach. NorthEast will look to perform better under Balbul and finish higher this season. Unfortunately, they have already lost their first three games and are at the bottom of the table.

• Head Coach - Marco Balbul
• Foreign Assistant Coach - Paul Groves
• Indian Assistant Coach - Floyd Pinto
• Goalkeeping Coach - Dipankar Choudhury
• Strength & Conditioning Coach - Niall Clark

East Bengal

After entering the ISL, East Bengal did not taste enough success, losing the majority of their matches. The club have had problems both on and off the field, ultimately affecting the team's overall performance graph. The Red & Golds have changed their coach thrice since 2020 and have now shown faith on former Indian national team manager Stephen Constantine who will look to revive the club.

• Head Coach - Stephen Constantine
• Foreign Assistant Coach - Thorhallur Siggeirsson
• Indian Assistant Coach - Bino George
• Goalkeeping Coach - Mihir Sawant